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No carbonated drinks - EVER. The gas plays havoc with the band, and can cause issues you probably don't want to experience. Alcohol is another story, but certainly not early in the post-op phase. You have to take into consideration that there is zero nutritional value in alcohol, and it also tends to bring down our resistance to eating in a way that we shouldn't. I know for me, eating a lot of finger foods goes hand in hand with drinking. But if you do decide to have a drink or two, make sure & count the calories in your daily allotment.

I drink coke zero everyday, multiple times a day, no issues at all. Doc said it's up to you some people can handle it some can't, apparently I can. Alcohol is okay too you just have to remember alcohol turns into sugar in your system in order to be processed. And that sugar for some reason hangs on a little longer than normal carbs or simple sugars. Just my 1/2 cent worth.

Ok people have talked about this before, but I wanted to share or put my 2 cents and my experience in. I'm past 8 months, 253 days post op to be exact. I wasn't a huge drinker but when I drank it was usually more than 2 drinks, so the long and short of it was I always got a hefty buzz or drunk, but I never drank unless I went out so I didn't see it as a "problem". But it was classic binge drinking when I did drink. Post surgery- after my ok to drink , I had some wine, first glass I didn't get drunk any faster, halfway through second I could be good but since we can't eat AND drink then why ruin my buzz, right? I eat well, I drink my water, I quit smoking, so I'd have some wine on the weekends (not normal for me) weekends turned into many days of the week, then every night. I've lost 104 now, I was still losing when I drank because I ate very little and I only drank wine. (I'm NOT glorifying any of this) With bariatric surgery I don't think there's a ok 2 glasses and I'm ok (as in not too drunk/tipsy, etc) . Pour that third glass and I was zero to 💯 and for me I would be drunk a lot longer. Alcoholism is huge in my family, why I thought having a few glasses of wine all the time was a good idea, maybe it filled the void. I tried to rationalize it with myself that because I couldn't eat and couldn't smoke anymore that having a few glasses was ok. I've been in therapy for food addiction, he said this isn't really transfer addiction because I didn't really have true food addiction. I guess I'm posting this for anyone who asks about drinking and if you have a history of any addiction or alcoholism in the family I would be cautious of alcohol. I should've known, thought about it more, but now I carry a chip from AA in my pocket everyday. I had a problem binge drinking before surgery, and yes you can be an alcoholic even if you don't drink that much, with me I drank to be buzzed or to get drunk. Im not posting this to be policed about the calories in wine or how it halts weight loss or to be bullied for making a poor choice. I'm posting this in the hopes that someone may read it who may be like me and start drinking a lot, or if someone is in recovery and wants to talk. If you do decide drink, be careful, it stayed in my bloodstream for a long time.

I'm pre-surgery, and don't think I know it all -- that's for sure, but I agree with the last post by Shiloh0772 about the Oprah show. Alcohol use is highly discouraged by surgeons (from what I learned in the patient education class). Smokers are also advised or required to quit smoking prior to and after surgery to avoid complications. Besides, when you want to improve your appearance and health by having gastric surgery, why would you want to mess things up by getting addicted to alcohol or drugs. People who drank before (especially those with alcoholism, admitted or not to their surgeon) and people who trade their food addictions for alcohol because of depression (or any other reason) are just harming themselves and risking complications. That's why support groups here and thru the various surgery clinics, and even some support groups elsewhere are so important, but it's up to the individual gastric surgery patient to reach out for help. It's also a factor I'm sure in why the Surgery Centers make you go thru a psychological evaluation before surgery. I have a really nice psychologist at the Bariatric Center of Kansas City that I not only saw for the psych evaluation, but also for continuing care pre-operatively and plan to have sessions post-operatively as needed.

@@Paulajo24 congrats on you long period of sobriety (msp?) drinking, smoking - then changing to food all bad addictions which is the worse of 3 evils??? i think we all know the right answer!! 4.5ears Post op RNy!!! congrats on all your accomplishments hope alll is well @@Timmy2shirts not a dumb question as others have said some people can have cross addictions sure this can happen turning to drugs, alcohol et al no stats from me about changing addictions, but i "think" the % is small IMO your boss made yet another ignorant statement concerning WLS many people don't understand the surgery they say stupid things like "you took the easy way out" try not to let let comments made from others bother you good luck Kathy

My surgeon didn't seem to think alcohol was a big deal after about a month, but my NUT's paperwork said to wait at least a year or year 1/2! Ummm... I'm gonna shoot for the holiday season later this year and see what happens!

Everyone is different but I find myself doing more physical things outdoors that I have not been able to do in years. I have become a gym rat to try and get into the best shape of my life. I am trying to get away from a lot of the things that contributed to me becoming obese in the first place such as sitting in the house watching TV or at the computer all day. I am trying to spend much more time doing anything that is physical that my weight prevented me from doing before. Now that I have all of this new found energy, it is a blast to work in the yard, the garage and any other projects I can come up with. Now as far as an addiction, I would have to say shopping. I love bargin shopping and now that I wear a size large instead of a 4x, it opens up a whole new world to me. I hated shopping before so this is kind of a surprise that I enjoy this so much. I was not there and do not know the context of what was said about replacing the eating addiction with another addiction but I will tell you this, there are many healthy addictions you can have, they do not all have to be bad. I am a little obsessed with being healthy now, I figure if I went through WLS, I got a second lease on life. I eat healthy now and do not drink alcohol or put anything in my body that does not have nutritional value. I will be the first to admit that I am a little overboard on this but I feel so much better and there is absolutely no way I ever will slip back to my old bad habits.

I think the day will come when you cannot smoke ANYWHERE except the privacy of your own home. Newborns in Texas are routinely tested for the presence of drugs and/or alcohol and can be taken into custody by CPS if they test positive. I think at some point in the future, a similar test will be done for nicotine.

My surgeon allows alcohol 3 months post-surgery. I have had cocktails about 3 times since surgery (all on vacation) but always limited to one, due to calories etc. The alcohol affected me the same as it did pre-surgery. I would go with your surgeon's recommendations.

How weird we have a range of a few weeks to a few years?!?! That's not consistent lol ... I sure it's not great to become a full on alcoholic after surgery but a few drinks here and there should be ok .. It's prob a lot to do w empty calories too ?

Congratulations on your amazing weight loss! Substance abuse (no matter the substance, alcohol, drugs, food, sex, whatever) is just a symptom of an inner problem. Our problem isn't food, it's our minds. My therapist knows that we're working together because I have food issues. But, we have hardly talked about my eating, at all. We've talked about all the other garbage that needs to be worked on, in order to be able to change my relationship with my drug of choice - food. It has been a very interesting experience, working with a therapist. And I know that the hardest work we will do, is yet to come. I started talking to him before my surgery, because I knew that I was really going to need his help after surgery. After my surgical sites heal, the real work will begin. It's a grand adventure!

Hi there! Thank you for the kind note. Doing really well. Quite honestly it was much better than I had prepared myself for. Pain was minimal, had some gas pressure and some reflux, but extremely manageable. It’s been four days and I’m still working to keep my fluids up. Haven’t been able to continue using Slim Fast Advanced due to dumping from the sugar alcohols. Premiere Protein shakes have been the answer for me. Also, I’ve become a big fan of Gatorade Zero for fluids. Right now I’m up to two to three12oz bottles of Gatorade Zero and one bottle of the Premiere (30g of Protein). Need to get that doubled over the weekend.

It's 4 days until my sleeve and I'm anxious. I've been so disciplined in my week of liquid diet it's hard to believe I couldn't do this without the sleeve....but I know better. So, I'm just curious if there's anything that you can't tolerate after surgery. Not post 6 weeks, I mean once on normal food. What about alcohol? Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I am very choosey about who I tell. My immediate family is in the loop, as well as my best friend, and boss (who currently has a Lap Band like me). I lost about 80 lbs. with my Lap Band and told those who did not know about my little assistant, that I ate less and exercised. All true since I trained for a marathon and was of course eating less because of the band. I'm not going to lie, but I also don't have to discuss my personal medical choices with anyone. I look at it this way: I'm an addict. Plain and simple. I am addicted to food and use it as a coping mechanism. It is something I will always have to work on even with WLS. I don't have to share how I treat my addiction with anyone. Just like alcoholics don't have to reveal that they go to AA. It's anonymous for a reason. My decision to have surgery and it's necessity does not have to be disclosed just because someone asks.

I don't know you so I don't know about the alcoholic thing, but please keep in mind if you're drinking every night then to excess (because you feel crappy the next day) every Friday night, you are drinking a lot of alcohol. Unfortunately for us, alcoholism does rise in people who have WLS of any sort. The reason being is, many people simply trade their food addiction for a new addiction. Just be very careful.

Been on this forum a while....I did leave for a while, about a year....it started to get to me and I had enough. When I first had my surgery, and found this site, (Lapband Talk)...there were many veterans I considered my mentors, and followed their personal testimony's with interest... But they are all gone......left. I noticed there are many other people who are doing well that just "Drop off the Radar"...did they have a major setback? Failure? Speaking from own feelings, I don't think so......bottom line, successful people simply do not fit in here, and don't have much in common....other than once upon a time they were beginners also. *****I am 100% successful...lost ALL possible weight. *****I finished this weight loss journey...done ...completed...reached my destination with a new life, a new outlook on what and how I eat, along with a love of exercise.... *****I have no hunger, no cravings, could care less about food or eating...a complete reversal from pre-surgery days. *****I will never Diet again, I eat what I want, NOT avoiding life's pleasures such as ice cream, Beer/alcohol, chips, etc, etc. *****I have no fear of overeating, the band sees to that...I have tried to overeat and find it impossible...does not matter where I'm at, vacation, a party, holiday dinner, venues may change but my surgery is a constant..... *****As a person with Lap band surgery, I cannot comprehend the notion of "Getting off track"....or the need to re-focus and start over....as long as the band does not have any issues,. I have NO FEAR of ever gaining the weight back! ******I have NEVER had a single issue with my band...the beginning "learning Phase" was tough, VERY Tough...but once that was past, it has been the EASIEST thing I could have ever done.....I don't even think about it! Bottom line, ALL my medical issues ( and there were many) have all been reversed or gone....I did have a heart attack, and that damage to the heart muscle is permanent..but tests show new arteries have branched out by-passing the damaged one... I can on and on...... Having said all the above, sounds pretty good, right? YET...in a environment of negativity, I'm the odd ball here....I'm the one who has to make excuses...TOTALLY out of sync. So why stick around? Because of all the negativity I feel SOMEONE has to stay in place and show people that this can and does work.... YET, by simply sharing your own life story, it hurts other people's feelings? They feel bullied??? It's no wonder successful veterans move on. It got to me once and I left for a while, and it's starting to get to me again... I see patients and families everyday in Clinic who are experiencing catastrophic medical situations, 10 times worse than anyone here is experiencing...(best of my knowledge) and I deal in Pediatrics so I see kids as early as 12 months old, whose lives will never be easy..... and yet I do not find anywhere as near, if any, negativity as is found on this forum.... It's crazy....either you want it or you don't....

When I read 3000 calories a day and a tracker I knew it was BMR plus exercise they all give you the daily total and the exercise break out. All the people like toss you tracker, really? Do you understand the apps? The alcohol is probably temp dehydrating you and flushing your system when it converts to sugar. I don't think drinking on the weekends is a sustainable weight loss method though. Why is everyone so damn angry in this thread?

I definitely knew that OP was including the BMR + calories burned from activity and stating total calories burned in a day. I have noticed that this site has many ultra sensitive folks, and ultra critical folks, and that combo is not always good. I posted a lot in the beginning but I stopped because I feel ppl are often overly critical when some folks are just trying to be honest about their experiences and get feedback from those who have experienced it too. For example, I have drank alcohol multiple times since surgery and I also have continued to lose. I think it's also because when you drink, you tend to eat less, and most likely you're active to some capacity. I'm sure someone will tear me down for this, but I don't follow every single rule and I've still been successful. I'm more than halfway to goal at only 4 months out. Just like any diet or lifestyle change, there will be some days where you splurge a little but the most important part is staying on track and being accountable. On a side note, I wish that we could just be honest adults without worrying that someone will jump all over us. I think the OP got defensive and maybe went a little far after, but I have seen this so many times on here. We all know what it feels like to be criticized, let's try to look at things from the other person's perspective. With that said, Carry on everyone lol ????????

I actually thought you were talking about BMR because I have a FitBit that calculates it that way as well. Now that that's cleared up, I have seen something similar happen if I drink a bit of wine but I've always attributed it to dehydration because the same thing happens the day after I've had diarrhea. You most likely are losing normally because you are in a normal deficit. Some people can eat or drink anything the first year and lose. It's after that honeymoon period you have to start watching calories, which you're already doing. While I don't think there is anything wrong with having a glass of wine now or then I've noticed it burns my stomach and the alcohol hits me really fast so I tend to avoid it. Also, most aren't advised to have it until closer to goal weight. There's also a higher risk for bariatric patients to have transfer addiction from food to alcohol so doctors advise you wait to consume. Not saying you have this, but that's why you'll get some negative responses. We've been warned and conditioned to avoid alcohol because of surgery.

I didn't order any alcohol in bars or anywhere while losing as that was the Cardinal sin for our program (doc was also a liver transplant specialist and didn't want any of his bariatric patients coming back onto his transplant table - seriously).

I worked to get my RNY surgery for almost a year. As the date approached, I got more and more nervous. It is a big deal - choosing an elective major surgery. As I was lying on the pre-op bed, I started crying and thinking maybe I should get up and leave. My surgeon came in and assured me that it would be OK and that none of his patients had ever come back regretting the procedure. My PCP previously had told me that if I had been able to do it on my own, I would have by now, Both doctors were right. This is about the best thing I have ever done for myself. Yes, I had a complication of a blood clot and am still on a blood thinner, but after 70+ pounds gone I feel like a new person. I am doing things I have not done for decades. I wish I had done it sooner in a way, but I really did need to come to a place in my life where I was willing to make the needed lifestyle changes first, and for the right reasons - health. And my commitment needed to be total. My life slogan now is "I AM NEVER GOING BACK!" If that means no more sugar, wheat, soda, coffee, alcohol, or processed foods, then so be it. My health is worth more than any of those things. Yup, my skin is getting saggy - but I am 63 years old, and the collagen just aint what it used to be. But so what? I am happier and healthier and saggy skin is just a badge of the journey. Haven't lost any hair yet, but again, if I do, so what? It will grow back. (have been taking Biotin 10,000 mcg since week 2 and nails are super strong so I hope it will also prevent hair loss). I have so much energy and stamina, my mental health is better, my sleep apnea is nearly gone, asthma improved, no GERD, my back and joints don't hurt anymore, I am not embarrassed in public, and I actually feel cold instead of sweating all the time. What's not to love? Being scared is normal for a lot of people. It just means you realize the risks. But you will never realize the benefits until you get to the other side. And this is the chance you have to take. If you could have done it on your own, you would have, It is still going to be a lot of work. This is not easy, but WLS is a tool that can give you the jump start you need for health and happiness for the rest of your life.

Jess, My relationship with my SO was horrible before surgery, so I am no expert on this. The one thing I do notice is that, although I had good boundaries before surgery and had moved out from a potentially physically abusive relationship, my boundaries are even stronger now. I attribute that to my growing self-confidence and to therapy. As of yesterday, *I* called off any further attempts at reconcilliation because my alcoholic husband does not have the emotional ability to support ME. He has a little over 30 days in on his sobriety, but, IMO, we're not going to be able to fix this relationship. So, the biggest change is that I am less able to accept negativity from other people. And, as I said, Im not sure it's a result from surgery or if it is a result of therapy. Either way, it's a good thing, IMO!!

I'm a non-smoker, but my doctor was adamant that I not smoke, drink alcohol, or drink caffeine for 2 weeks before, and 8 weeks after surgery. In his opinion, nicotine, caffeine, and alcohol can irritate the site where the band is placed, and can interfere with healing after. He said that most of his band slippages are in people who drink, smoke, or drink caffeine within the few weeks after surgery. This was in some of the literature I was given too.

It’s off the list because 1 the calories & 2 the possible addiction switching. But it is a choice thing. I had a g&t at about month 2 or 3 at a cousin’s 40th. Sat on it for 3 hours. I only have an alcoholic drink maybe once a month or two & sip the one drink slowly. I don’t really enjoy it the same way.

Can the band just kick in out of the blue??? I am not talking about restriction. I am talking about just weight loss?? I have had the most amazing 3 days in a row. I am a scale-aholic I weigh myself at least 2x in the morning & sometimes at night. ( I know how wrong that is but I just can't seem to stop it-unless I am on vacation) I have been at a plateau for at least 5-6 weeks constantly gaining & losing the same 2 pounds. Up & Down Up & Down. I haven't changed anything in my routine-except a trip to vegas where i did consume alot of alcohol. Which typically isn't in my diet at all. Well the past 3 days everyday my scale has gone down a FULL POUND. I have lost 3 1/2 pound in 3 days. I know its not alot or earth shattering but I haven't seen the scale pass 229 in sooo damn long & this morning it flashes 225.5! I almost didn't believe it!! I am happy but hesitant. Can this happen all of the sudden?? Is this how its going to be a platuea for weeks & than a loss of 3 or more? Iam not complaining but just praying that it keeps going down at a steady pace instead of a repeat preformance. Oh how I would love to be under 200 before my Birthday.